The shadow puppet theatre belongs to the genre of art forms that are practiced by a few. Kerala too has a proud legacy in the field of shadow puppetry. It is locally known as Tholpava Koothu (‘Thol’ means leather, ‘Pava’ means doll and ‘Koothu’ means play). Tholpava Koothu is prevalent in the central parts of Kerala comprising the districts of Palakkad, Thrissur and Malappuram.
Krishnan kutty pulavar memorial Tholpavakoothu & puppet centre is formed in memory of great guru shri: K.L.Krishnan kutty pulavar, before it is known as Tholpavakoothu & puppet centre. Guru Krishna kutty pulavar was a well known activist and puppeteer in the field of puppetry play in kerala. Now ,keeping the traditional style of narrations the centre has been done many stage performance including foriegn nations as well.The lead puppeteer RAMACHANDRA PULAVAR who is in cotrol of centre has got many awards and recognizations.
The trust promotes puppetry in the traditional style and their main objectives are to encourage the new generations to puppetry keep the Tholpavakoothu in the traditional style in the temple premises and help & support the artist Conduct puppetry festivals, workshop, and seminars in Kerala. The organization conducts camps, Exhibitions on puppetry creating new stories through puppetry.
